Japanese convenience store giant Lawson has begun a pilot program allowing customers to pay using yen-denominated stablecoin JPYC, according to a report by Nikkei published on Monday.
The trial is set to launch in early August at Lawson’s Takanawa Gateway City location in Tokyo. The initiative is part of a proof-of-concept collaboration between Lawson, KDDI—Japan’s second-largest telecommunications operator—and HashPort, a crypto wallet provider that supports JPYC transactions.
Lawson, Japan’s third-largest convenience store chain after Seven-Eleven and FamilyMart, operates 14,697 stores nationwide and reported net sales exceeding 3.02 trillion yen ($18.68 billion) in fiscal year 2026.
JPYC, launched in October 2023, holds the distinction of being Japan’s first registered yen-backed stablecoin following the introduction of licensing requirements for stablecoin issuers under Japan’s Payment Services Act in 2023. The stablecoin maintains a 1:1 peg with the Japanese yen and is built on multiple blockchains, including Avalanche, Ethereum, Polygon, and Kaia.
JPYC Inc. states that all issued tokens are fully backed by yen deposits and Japanese government bonds. As of last week, the onchain circulation of JPYC surpassed 2 billion yen ($12.36 million).
In efforts to broaden its footprint in Japan’s digital asset ecosystem, JPYC recently joined forces with Metaplanet and Progmat to explore digital credit solutions leveraging bitcoin, stablecoins, and security tokens.
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